If you live in a high-crime area, or like Francis Kamanga keep a lot of chicken, you may want to have a security system installed.
But home security systems can be expensive.
One Sunday in December 2019, Kamanga, then a 19-year-old Form 3 student in Limuru, walked home to find all his 50 chicken stolen.
The thieves left without a trace.
So he decided to invest in an alarm system.
But most home security systems require professional installation and upfront payments, sometimes more than Sh20,000.
“I could not get any budget-friendly options,” he says.
“So I decided to make my own alarm system.”
That year, he cobbled together some mabati, wires and wood from his family’s old house and made a prototype.
He later improved this prototype with the help of his physics teacher Bernard Maina, from Ngenia high school in Limuru.
The current apparatus is still a work in progress. It comprises a maze of old wires, light bulbs, fuses and a motion sensor that triggers the sound alarm and sends a phone call to the owner’s mobile phone warning of a possible break-in.
The contraption looks heavy and unprepossessing compared to today’s smart alarms. “But it does the job, and is easy to operate,” he says.
He displayed it at the Kiambu County stand during the Devolution Conference in Makueni in November.
“I have patented the system with an advocate, but I am still looking to improve it after my studies and send a perfect product to the Kenya Bureau of Standards for evaluation.”
Kamanga completed Form 4 in April 2021 and scored a C (plain).
At that time, ICT CS Joe Mucheru got wind of his invention and sponsored him to join Gearbox Academy to study Mechatronics Engineering in May 2021.
The college is based in Nairobi’s Industrial Area.
“The programme takes two years. I am specialising in robotics and I know I can upgrade the systems to come up with a better product,” he says.
Protective and Safety Association of Kenya chairman Encok Makanga said most homes in Kenya are not protected with security systems, although such products are becoming more affordable.
Apart from protecting homes from intruders, security systems also deter burglars.
Some studies show that nearly 40 per cent of burglaries are often a “spur-of-the-moment” event and thugs will not break in if they realise there is an alarm installed or even a security dog.
According to the 2020 Economic Survey by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, Nairobi, Kiambu, Meru, Nakuru, Mombasa, Kisii, Machakos, Murang’a, Bungoma, Trans Nzoia, Kilifi and Uasin Gishu have the highest crime incidence in Kenya.
Kamanga understands his invention as it is, may not compete against modern alarm systems in the market.
“But it costs only Sh15,000 and is easily modifiable. So there is still a place for it,” he says.
Edited by A.N
